A Twitter bug has prevented the “Protect Your Tweets” setting from working as intended for some Android users.
What is particularly notable about this bug is that it has been impacting users over a period of several years.
The company disclosed that the bug began affecting users on November 3, 2014. It wasn’t fixed until January 14, 2019.
We’ve become aware of and fixed an issue where the “Protect your Tweets” setting was disabled on Twitter for Android. Those affected have been alerted and we’ve turned the setting back on for them. More here: https://t.co/0qM5B1S393
— Twitter Support (@TwitterSupport) January 17, 2019
According to Twitter’s announcement, the “Protect your Tweets” setting was disabled for some Android users if certain account changes were made, such as changing the email address associated with the account.
The bug did not people who use Twitter on iOS or on the web.
Twitter has informed people that are known to be affected by the bug. The “Protect your Tweets” setting was automatically turned back on for them if it was disabled.
However, Twitter notes, it cannot confirm every account that may have been impacted. Which is why it’s publicly disclosing the issue.
If you are an Android user who may have been impacted by this bug, Twitter suggests reviewing your privacy settings to check whether or not your tweets are protected.
The company assures users that measures are being put in place to prevent a similar incident from occurring.
“We recognize and appreciate the trust you place in us, and are committed to earning that trust every day. We’re very sorry this happened and we’re conducting a full review to help prevent this from happening again.”
If you have further questions or concerns, Twitter has opened up a data protection inquiry form here.
